FREEWAY SHOOTING VICTIM DIES

2nd victim in stable condition; $50,000 reward announced

LA MESA 
A man shot in the head during a car-to-car shooting on Interstate 8 has died, and authorities on Monday announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

Police said they suspect the early Sunday morning shooting that killed Xusha Brown Jr., 22, was gang-related.

The El Cajon man was a front-seat passenger in a Nissan Maxima when he was gravely wounded on eastbound Interstate 8 near state Route 125 early Sunday, authorities said. He died at a hospital, the Medical Examiner’s Office said Monday.

The driver of the Nissan — Malcolm Hune, 21, of San Diego — was seriously injured but is expected to survive, La Mesa police Capt. David Bond said Monday. A bullet traveled through Hune’s left arm and lodged in his torso. He remained hospitalized in stable condition, the captain said.

Others were in the Nissan — Bond would not say how many — but were not injured in the shooting. An uninjured person in the car drove the victims to Sharp Grossmont Hospital.

Bond said multiple shots were fired during the attack.

He declined to say why investigators suspect that gangs played a role, but said neither of the victims is a documented gang member. Investigators would not say whether the shooter and the victims knew each other.

“Our investigation shows that this is not a random shooting,” he said.

Bond said the shooter was in a silver or light-gray sedan. Police do not know how many people were in that car.

Callers contacted the California Highway Patrol about 3:40 a.m. Sunday morning to report seeing a person — later identified as Brown — lying on the ground on the freeway and a car blocking a portion of the road.

“He was scooped back up into the car and ultimately driven to the hospital,” Bond said.

Less than 10 minutes later, security officers from Grossmont Hospital called police to report that two gunshot victims had shown up there.

Brown was a member of the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation. On Monday, tribal officials announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in connection with the fatal shooting.

Of that reward money, $10,000 is being offered through San Diego County Crime Stoppers. The rest is offered through the La Mesa Police Department.

Adam Day, Sycuan assistant tribal manager, said the Brown family and tribal members are “shocked and horrified by the senseless shooting.”

“We need your (the community’s) help in finding whoever was responsible for this horrific crime,” Day said.

Authorities asked witnesses or tipsters with information about the shooting to call Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477 or the La Mesa Police Department at (619) 667-1400.